4.22.2013

Homes of the Future // Living Green

From a very young age I always dreamed about building a huge house. I always dreamed of designing all the details myself. I would sketch out ideas and look at design magazines. Design and decorating has always been a creative outlet for me. Over the past few years I stopped dreaming of a big houses. I started to ask myself, "Why do I need something huge?" Yes, more rooms to decorate, but that means more stuff. Which equals more money. No thanks. Even our current home is larger then we need. I have always loved homes with a modern and contemporary look, like this one...

zagaleta_040310_02

It almost looks like a piece of artwork or at least an art museum I suppose. Since our life has changed so much due to the military, we have no idea what our future holds. Where will we live? Will we stay with the military or will we break free? The thought of breaking free is AMAZING! To be able to live where ever I want in the country, yes please! After searching the internet for green type houses I stumbled across a company called Blue Sky Building Systems. They build these very modern looking homes that are almost completely made from recycled materials. Ever since I watched the video below I haven't stopped thinking about them..



Blue Sky Home

Even though they say the homes are affordable, I doubt that they are for my current income! ;) I find these homes so fascinating and they look a lot like the houses I used to dream of having. I love that it uses solar energy. This is such a huge thing for me. If I can't afford one of these particular homes someday, I at least want some solar panels! There are so many companies out there that specialize in solar energy products. The company VELUX has all kinds of information and products on their website for sustainable living. I really enjoyed this video from their site...


Roof windows and solar panels? Sign me up!
VELUX also designs blinds that custom fit all their roof windows.

I think it would also be neat to just buy an older house and convert it into a green home by adding solar and wind energy to it. Or how about buying an old school bus and converting it into a home? May not be for everybody, but it's pretty cool! Here is an awesome video about how one couple did it...



There are so many ways to live a greener lifestyle. I look forward to the day when I can put some of these things effect into my own life. Now my dream of owning a large fancy house has been replaced with living in something green and environmentally friendly! I found this website which shares 21 Amazing Off-the-Grid Houses! Very inspiring!

A few months back I did a post called Ways I have Gone Green, check it out if you missed it.
Happy Earth Day everybody!

17 comments:

  1. The houses look cool! I wonder exactly how much they cost to have built. Either way, I'm sure they far exceed my price range. Boo. For the longest time I wanted a big house. Recently though, I'm not sure. It's just more to clean, more to heat and more stuff to buy. I'm pretty sure we have a room now we can just close the door on and easily never go in there for years and years. We really don't need it.

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    1. I am really in love with the house in the desert. It's so adorable. I think I want grass and trees though. hahaha I need a pet goat. :)

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    2. It's so funny you say that because my husband has always wanted a castle like house and he wants to make something about our off the grid home look like a castle. Then I stumbled upon an image of a castle that had outside stairs and two goats going up those stairs. I sent it to him and he responded with "castle goats." So I said, yup, that's what we need, some castle goats. ;)

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  2. I feel the same way girl! I used to want a huge mansion! But now, that I have a little apartment, my mind has changed. Not that our apartment is too big for us, just a 2 bedroom, it still feels like too much for me! Too much cleaning! Haha. I have definitely decided that I only need enough room for US. You know what I mean? And I love those houses! I have even thought about the "Tiny homes" that have become popular. They have a few cute ones in Oregon. Haha. I loooove them! I am also totally into solar power, it has really grown on me, especially being here in Germany. It's huuuuge in Germany. I definitely would love to have a "green" house!! :) Lovely post, Jess!

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    1. Thanks Adrienne, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've heard of the "tiny homes", but haven't really looked at them. I think I would love Germany. They just seem so more advanced then us when it comes to the environment. :) I need less stuff. That seems to be the main reason I would need a bigger home. I rather have more land or more privacy then tons of rooms in my house. Apartments and smaller places are just so much easier to take care of!!!

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    2. Oh I just love the Tiny home concept. For some time we were thinking of doing those because we just don't need much space and never have craved a large house and those tiny homes are built to have everything right there for you. They are super neat!

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  3. i've never wanted a huge house but mine is a bit too small at the moment. I would love to have more space to move around and bigger windows to let the sun come in. but since i'm not a cleaning freak, a smaller house is perfect for me. i would rather have a huge land than a huge house :)

    fashion-hermite.blogspot.ca

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    1. Me too. Land would be nice. That's something I've never had. I'm a neat freak as well. I think that's why a smaller place would be better for me. Plus you can't allow yourself to "collect" too much stuff!! I hate clutter.

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  4. I love that video on the house as an organism. It's amazing how much heat a bit of sunlight offers. In my dorm, we don't have control of the central heating which is often way too hot. Because of this, a lot of people run their air conditioners all year long which is ridiculous since they could save energy by just opening their windows to let in cool air.
    Hope to hear about your house projects, maybe even you getting those solar panels.

    http://ichoosetorefuse.blogspot.com/

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    1. It's amazing what we can do by using the sun. At least solar is finally really starting to take off!!!

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  5. Thanks for sharing Jessie! There is one thing we sure do have in common, a love for green living and all things environmentally friendly. I love the idea of roof windows. We are thinking of having some skylights but we do know we want a living roof. I find living roofs to be beautiful and just fascinating. :)

    I enjoyed watching the school bus turned home. I love seeing all of those, like silos and airplanes turned into homes. I recently saw a beautiful photo of a school bus turned into a greenhouse. They removed the roof and made them peaked glass panels, allowing the sun to come in. It was just beautiful to look at.

    You know I love off the grid and green living, so I'm so happy to see you sharing a glimpse at green living to all of your readers. It was a pleasure to read along. Thanks Jessie! :)

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    1. The bus is so freakin cool!!! I just don't know if I could live in such a narrow space. I love the thought of being able to travel and move my house, but I'm not sure if I could do that. It's so inspiring though. The greenhouse sounds awesome! I look forward to someday really learning about off the grid living and what the best options would be for Cody and I. Since we currently are stuck where we are, we just save money for the future. What that future will be I do not know? It's exciting to dream about though. :) Thanks for stopping by, always.

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    2. I agree- it's always exciting to dream and save up for those dreams. :) I remember when we were in the military we felt incredibly trapped and it's one reason we both got out. So I understand your feeling stuck. It's weird, when thinking about it, that we felt trapped because they moved us quite a lot so you'd think we'd feel freer but especially when you are in, they control your every move and that made me feel trapped. But I don't want to go talking about that or we might be here for a while. And I want to stay on exciting things like off the grid living!

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  6. Oh my goodness, I could LIVE in that bus. So simple. I would make it a hippie bus though with LOADS of color!

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    1. hahaha It does seem like it should be more of a "hippie" thing. I thought they were such a cute fun couple. Living mortgage free would be amazing. That is my goal someday!!!

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  7. I have been wanting one of these since I stumbled across the website in 2008. Yes. This is my goal in life.

    http://www.flatpakhouse.com/

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    1. Thanks for link Katherine. The Flat Pak houses look really neat and beautiful. :) I am following them on Flickr now.

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